A nearly $50 million plan to close Sea Road School in Kennebunk and undertake major renovations at three other district schools was presented by the Regional School Unit 21 school board Monday night.
The board is proposing an estimated $34 million renovation of Kennebunk High School and $13.4 million renovation of Kennebunkport Consolidated School and Mildred L. Day School in Arundel. Sea Road School students would be sent to the remaining elementary schools in the district and the building would be used to temporarily house students who are displaced during the renovation projects.
Approval for a high school renovation bond would be sought in June 2011, with construction to begin in 2012. A second bond, for the elementary school renovation work at M.L. Day and Consolidated schools, would go before voters in June 2014.
In the redistricting process, Kennebunk Elementary School would become a K-5 school instead of K-3, beginning in the fall of 2012. The board is proposing to sell Sea Road School once all of the renovations are complete.
The committee’s recommendations will be discussed at a public session preceding the school board meeting on Monday, Oct. 18, from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Economos Auditorium at Kennebunk High School.
The proposal is the culmination of a year-long facilities study and a response to the excess capacity and building deficiencies that were identified throughout the district. The study was conducted by Harriman Associates of Auburn, which worked closely with the RSU 21 Facilities Committee.
Dan Cecil, a principal and architect with Harriman Assoc., presented a summary of the 118-page study to the board Monday.
The Finance Committee reviewed seven options to address the district’s capacity and renovation concerns, he said, which ranged from closing M.L. Day or Consolidated School to closing all the elementary schools in favor of a single new building.
“Sea Road School closure became the preferred option,” said Cecil, “as it allowed an elementary school to remain open in each of the three towns.”
This plan, though more expensive initially, will end up saving the district more money than maintaining the current arrangement, Cecil said, largely due to improved energy efficiency.
“This option does pay for itself,” he said, adding, “Sea Road School can be used to help you renovate the high school and elementary schools. It would be a tremendous advantage for you” as an alternate location for students while repairs are underway at their school.
“The renovation work can be done faster and at a lower cost,” said Tim Hussey, Facilities Committee chairman.
Renovation of the high school is the priority of the plan, as identified by the committee.
“It’s at a point in its life cycle where it needs significant capital investment,” said Cecil. He cited crowded classrooms, nine modular classrooms, poor ventilation and outdated electrical and heating systems, among other concerns.
The plan for KHS also includes a renovated 600-seat theater, new track, additional playing fields and bleachers, he said.
“I think it makes sense for you to renovate KHS and breathe another 50-75 years of life into it,” he said, noting that the majority of the building is in good condition structurally. “It’s absolutely clear to us that renovating the building is a really good investment.”
School board members did not comment on the proposal during the presentation Monday, though they did praise the work done on the plan and ask a few questions.
“The closure of any elementary school is a very significant event,” said board member Matt Fadiman, who questioned a forecast of declining enrollment. “I can’t imagine anything more distasteful to the community” than to close a school and later have to bring in portables for students, he said.
RSU 21 is projected to lose 453 students by 2020, according to a study by the Department of Education, said Cecil, and the district already has space for an additional 454 students beyond its current population.
Cecil said that the state’s numbers have proven accurate within a 10 percent margin and that KES would be slightly crowded if the plan were enacted next year, but in four years the capacity would be just right.
The facilities study is available online at www.rsu21.net and will be made available at the town halls and libraries of the district.
— City Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 322 or kristenm@journaltribune.com.
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